Israel offers million dollar aid to hotel sector

Friday, June 5, 2020

The Israel ministers of finance and tourism, Israel Katz and Asaf Zamirn recently announced that the government will be providing a NIS300 million (£67 million) aid package for the domestic hotel sector. The decision arrived after a meeting between the ministers and representatives of the tourism industry. The move comes in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic that has harshly impacted the hotel industry across the globe.

The ministers addressed the effect of the border closures and travel restrictions on the hotel sector. The widespread termination of employees was also discussed. As a response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Israel too closed its borders to foreign arrivals back during March in order to curb the spread of the deadly coronavirus. This in turn, disrupted the tourism industry as well as the hotel sector.

Restrictions continue to stay in effect and the country is yet to welcome back foreign tourists. International tourists make up around 50% of all hotel guests in Israel. However, as and arrivals are unlikely to begin again in coming weeks, the future of the hotel industry remains uncertain as of now. Therefore, considering the present scenario the ministers decided to allocate a budget to assist hotels and the hospitality sector.

Minister Asaf Zamirn said in a recent statement that the entire tourism industry is in a severe crisis due to the coronavirus pandemic and it was the duty of the ministers to undertake a rapid action in order to bring the hotel industry back in its form once again and provide assistance in the road to recovery. At present, it is expected that the allotted cash holds the capability of reducing future dependency on overseas tourism.

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